Expansible and collapsible-core spool mechanism



4 April 23, 1957 J. P. LOOP EXPANSIBLEI AND COLLAPSIBLE-CORE SPOOL MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 3, 1955 JAMES P. LOOP .INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS J. P. LooP April 23, 1957 EXPANSIBLE AND COLLAPSIBLE-CORE SPOOL MECHANISM Filed May 5, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet '2 JAMES P. LOOP IN V EN TOR.

ATTORNEYS United States Patent EXPANSIBLE AND coL'LAPsIBnEooRE SPOOL MECHANISM James P. Loop, Kokomo, Ind, assignor to Continental Steel Corporation, Kokomo, Ind., a corporation of Indiana Application May 3, '1955, Srial No. 505,594 14 "(or 2 12 119 This invention relates to spool structures and more particularly to a highly improvedexpansible and collapsible-core type spool especially useful for winding wire and the like into coils which may thereupon easily be removed from the spool. e

The present invention contemplates a spool having a removable end 'flange and a segmented cylindrical core, the construction of the spool being such that the core of the spool automatically collapses radially to facilitate easy removal of a coil of wire therefrom when the flange is loosened preparatory to its removal, and automatically expands 'when the flange is reinstalled preparatory to winding another coil of wire on the spool. One of the important objects of the present invention is to fprovide in a spool of this type improved means for expanding and collapsing the spool core. Another object of the invention is to provide in the spool, means for expanding and collapsing the core of the spool in such a way that the substantially cylindrical shape of the core is maintained at all times, only its diameter being changed during the expanding and contracting movement. 'Still another object of the invention is to provide me spool of this character means permitting movement of the core segments only in a radial direction with 'respeet'to the shaft upon which the spool is mounted, thereby avoiding jamming of the segmentsand other binding of parts such as has caused many earlier spools of the collapsible-core 'type to be difiicult and troublesome to operate, Yet another object of the invention is to provide in thefspoo'l improved means for transmitting to thefs'eginer'ited core the frotative power of the shaft, ng a rugged and durable 's'po'ol suitable, if desired, for 'windin'g coils 10f wiref'und'er substantial 't' ien. "Still another object of the invention is to provide hand ep er ed means for securin the removable flange pen "are spoohthe hand operated 'me'anseif'eeting e ns'n 'oftli eere of the spool 'afte'rthe flange has; 7 p s fed up n the end "of the s ool, and erasing collapse or rhe'e'ere before the flan e is'remoyed. H v a These 'ane ether objects an advantages r the p tfesent invention will be apparent fr 2 the follow "description preferred embotli" erit thereof, "taken with the accompanying drawin s wh er thefspool ih it's expan p Hg. '3 is an enaviewpfjth 'sp ei 3- 3 i'n Fig. 'l,"tl'1e""co re the a es expandedeenditionend t erm et l y 1 .s Fig. 4 is a frag'nrentary sectional Fig. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view simil'a l' ig. 2 biit steering the ante pertibn 5f its area in n; ecllapsed condition and with an end flange of the- S3 51 Eemoved to permit easy removal of the coil of wire frdm the collapsed core of the spool. p v

In the drawings the numeral 10 designates a e lindrieal end portion of a rotatably driven shaft having theieona relatively long, axially extending key 11. Encompassing the shaft, and keyed thereto by the key 11, there is a driving hub l2 having thereon a-radially extending flange 13, axial movement of the hub upon the shaft 11) -bei ng prevented by a pair of collars I l and 15 that are secured to the shaft, as by set screws 16, at opposite ends of secured upon one face of the flange 13 by a plurality of screws 13 having exposed heads 19, and a circular guide plate 23 is secured upon the other face of the flange "-1 3 by a plurality of screws 21 that extend through the flange and are threaded. into the guide plate, the heads of these latter screws being counter-sunk in the flange 13, asbest seen in Figs. 2 and 5. a

An inner core member 22 is slidably received upon the shaft 10 and keyed thereto by the key 11, the central portion 23 of the core member being cylindrical in shape and its left end (as seen in Figs. 2 and 5) having a bellshaped conical portion 24 formed thereon. The exterior surface 25 of this bell-like portion is cone-shaped and its larger end has a cavity 26 therein which receives the hub retaining collar 15 without interference therewith. The outermost end 27 of the inner core member 22, on the other hand, is of reduced diameter and ispro vided with threads 23. v y

A plurality of axially extending core segments 29 ride upon the conical surface 25 of the cone portion 24 of core member 22, the present embodiment of the invention having six such identical core segments. The outer surfaces St) of the core segments are arcuate and together they provide a substantial cylindrical core for the spool. The under side of each of the segments has a heavy integral leg-like portion 31 thereon which extends radially inwardly and has a concave surface 32 formed on its lower end which conforms tosand rides upon the conical surface of the bell-like portion of the inner core member 22. The inwardly extending leg portions 31 of the core segments-29 have tapered forward surfaces 33 formed thereon in which there is provided a deep a-rcuate groove 34,

' the composite grooves 34 providing a circular, recessed seat for receiving a circular helical tension spring 35. As seen in Figs. 2, 3 and 5, this spring tends to dra wthe core segments 29 radially inwardly on the conical surface 25 or the bell-like portion '24 of the inner core member 22, this action being guided by the peripheral portion of the circular guide plate 29 and by aplurality of radially extending dowel pins 31; provided on the outer periphery of the guide plate. As best seen in Figs. 2 and 5, each of the core segments 29 adjacent its inboard end is provided on its under side with an arcuate shaped slot 29c which receives and rides upon the peripheral portion of the guide plate 20. These slots are only slightly wider than the thickness of the plate and the presence of the peripheral portion of the vplate therein prevents axial movement of the segments with respect to the shaft 10,.

pins 3 6 are anchored in any suitable manner in the peripheral portion of the plate 20 and extend radially 0 therefrom, their outer portions being slid'ably received in openings 37 provided in the. adjoining lateral faces-of adjacent core members 29. These dowel pins serve-with the guide plate as to limit the individual core segmentsthe guide plate 20. This positive transmission of the rotary power of the shaft to the individual core segments 29 not only prevents the segments fro-m slipping with respect to the shaft and the inner core member 22, but also permits the spool assembly to be employed, if desired, in the winding of coils of wire and the like under substantial tension.

The inner ends 29a of the core segments 29 reside in a circular groove 17a provided in the inner face of the inboard spool flange 17, and when the spool is assembled the outer ends 29b of the core segments reside in a similar circular groove 3801 provided in the inner face of an outer removable spool flange 38, the presence of the ends of the segments in the grooves 17a and 38a limiting the outermost radial position attainable by the segments 29. This outer spool flange 38 is provided with an axially located opening 39 that is slidably received upon the cylindrical central portion 23 of the inner core member 22, this portion of the core member having a key 40 secured thereto, as by a screw 41, to prevent rotation of the flange 38 with respect to the inner core member and the shaft 10, the key 40 being received in a key slot provided in the opening 39 of the flange 33. This flange 38 is removable and its outer face has secured thereon, as by a plurality of screws 43, two halves 42a and 42b of a circular retaining ring 42. The inner edge of the retaining ring is provided with an inwardly extending lip 44 which slidably overlies a radially extending annular shoulder 45 provided on the inner end of a handwheel hub 46, the hub being provided with an internally threaded opening 47 adapted to be received upon the external threads 28 on the outer end of the inner core member 22. The handwhee l hub 46 is retained upon the outer face of the outboard flange 38 of the spool by the retaining ring 2 but is freely rotatable therein, the inner end of the hub 46 being provided with a cavity 43 so as not to interfere with the cylindrical portion 23 of the inner core member 22 or the key 40 mounted thereon. The hub 46 is also pro- "vided with radially extending spokes 49 that are joined at their outer ends by a circular hand ring 50 which may be easily gripped in the hand for rotating the hub 46.

Fig. 5 shows the spool assembly in its disassembled state with the handwheel hub 46 and the outboard flange 38 of the spool removed from the remainder of the assembly. In this condition, as will be more fully explained be low, the core elements 29 are in their radially retracted state so that a coil of wire 51 previously wound upon the spool may easily be removed therefrom in an axial direction toward the right. After the coil of wire has been removed from the disassembled spool, the spool is reassembled preparatory to winding another coil of wire thereon. in assembling the spool the outboard flange 38 thereof is passed to the left, as viewed in Fig. 5, so that the opening 39 in the flange passes over the threads 28 on the outer end of the inner core member 22 and onto the cylindrical portion 23 thereof, the key 40 entering the keyway provided in the flange. Movement of the flange 38 in the manner just stated brings the internal threads of the opening of the handwheel hub 46 into contact with the external threads 28 on the outer end of the inner core member 22, whereupon the hand ring 50 is turned to rotate the hub 46 and advance the same inwardly on the threads 28. The inward movement of the hub on the threads 28 carries the flange 33 inwardly, the outer ends 2% of the core elements 29 seating in the circular groove 38a provided in the inner face of the flange. When the outer ends of the core elements have seated in the groove 38a, further rotation of the handwheel hub 46 causes the inner core member 22 to be pulled to the right, thereby causing relative axial motion between the conical seat thereon and the inner surfaces 32 of the core elements -29, thereby forcing the core elements radially outwardly in opposition to the forces of the spring 35. This radial outward movement of the core elements 29 increases the diameter of the substantially cylindrical spool core provided by the outer surfaces 30 of the core elements, the circular grooves 17a and 38a in the flanges 17 and 38, respectively, being of sufficient width to permit the radial movement of the core elements to the positions thereof shown in Fig. 2. During this outward radially expanding movement of the core elements 29, movement of the core elements in an axial direction is prevented by the radially extending dowel pins 36 and the guide plate 20, as previously explained.

With the spool thus assembled and with its core elements 29 in their expanded condition, the spool assembly is prepared to receive Wire thereon. In order to anchor the leading end of the Wire to the spool each of the outermost ends of the core elements 29 is provided with a radially disposed slot 52 having transverse dimensions slightly larger than the diameter of the wire to be wound upon the spool. The leading end of the wire is inserted into any one of the slots 52 and is then bent over against the adjacent outer surface 30 of the core element 29, thereby anchoring the end of the wire. Rotative power is then applied to the drive shaft 10 to rotate the spool assembly and wind the coil of wire 51 thereon, only a portion of this coil of wire being shown in Figs. 1, 2, 4 and 5 for simplicity of illustration.

When the winding of the coil 51 has been completed, rotation of the shaft 10 and the spool assembly is discontinued and the coil of wire is tied by transverse bands or transverse tying wires while the coil is still upon the spool. For this purpose the flanges 17 and 38 of the spool assembly are each provided with a plurality of radially disposed slots 53 extending inwardly from the peripheries of the flanges to points opposite the ends of the core elements 29, each core element having an axially extending slot 54 in its outer surface 30 aligned with a pair of the slots 53. The transverse tie wires for the coil are passed through the slots 53 of one or the other of the flanges 17 or 38, thence through the grooves 54 under the innermost convolutions of the coil 51, and then out through the slots 53 of the other flange, whereupon the tie wires are bent outwardly around the outside of the coil and are twisted together or are otherwise tied.

When the coil has been tied and the wire leading to the coil has been cut, the handwheel S0 and its hub 46 are backed off of the threads 28 of the inner core member 22. As the initial phase of this operation takes place the tension in the circular helical spring 35, urging the core elements 29 radially inwardly, causes the inner core member 22 to slide to the left on the shaft 10 along the key 11, thereby permitting the tension of the spring 35 to retract the core elements 29 and thereby reduce the diameter of the core of the spool. The handwheel 50 and its hub 46 are thereafter backed completely oif of the threads 28, thereby causing complete removal of the outboard flange 38 from the spool assembly, as shown in Fig. 5. As previously stated, removal of this outer flange, plus the uniform retraction of the core members to reduce the diameter of the core of the spool, permits easy removal of the coil of wire 51 from the core of the spool in an axial direction toward the right as viewed in Fig. 5.

It will again be noted that during both the expanding and retracting radial movement of the core members 29, the dowel pins 36 and the peripheral portion of the plate 20 guide the radial movement of the core members and prevent any axial movement thereof either to the right or to the left, thereby eliminating any tendency for the parts to bind and insuring easy operation of the assembly.

The foregoing description has been given for clearness of understanding only and no unnecessary limitations are intended thereby, for it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that numerous variations and modifications may be made in the construction of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An expansible and collapsible-core take-up spool an inboard radially extending spool flange fixed about said shaft inwardly of an end portion thereof, an inner core member axially slidable about said end portion of said shaft, said inner core member having a conical portion thereon and a threaded outboard end, a plurali-ty of longitudinally extending movable spool core segments disposed about said conical portion of said inner core member, said core segments having arcuate outer surfaces collectively providing a substantially cylindrical core for said spool and having inner surfaces riding upon said conical portion of said inner core member, a radially extending segment guide plate fixed with respect to said shaft and having a peripheral portion thereon engaging said segments and permitting only radial movement of said segments with respect to said shaft, and a radially extending outboard spool flange assembly removably threaded upon said outboard end of said inner core member, said outboard flange assembly being movable inwardly on the threads of said inner core member to a position abutting the outer ends of said core segments, further inward threaded movement of said flange assembly with respect to said inner core member thereupon moving said inner core member axially on said shaft to displace said core segments radially outwardly, thereby effecting an increase in the diameter of the cylindrical core of said spool.

11. The combination set forth in claim 10, including means on said segment guide plate for imparting to said core segments the rotary motion of said shaft and said guide plate.

12. The combination set forth in claim 10, including means on the inner faces of said inboard spool flange and said outboard flange assembly for limiting the maximum outward radial movement of said segments.

13. An expansible and collapsible-core take-up spool for coiling wire and the like comprising, a rotatable shaft, an inboard radially extending spool flange fixed about said shaft inwardly of an end portion thereof, an inner core member axially slidable about said end portion of said shaft, said inner core member having a conical portion thereon and a threaded outboard end, a plurality of Iongitudinally extending radially movable spool core segments disposed about said conical portion of said inner core member, said core segments having arcuate outer surfaces collectively providing a substantially cylindrical 45 core for said spool and having inner surfaces riding upon said conical portion'of said inner core member, segment guide means preventing longitudinal movement of said core segments with respect to said shaft, a radially extending outboard spool flange, a handwheel rotatably mounted upon said outboard flange and threadedly received upon said threaded outboard end of said inner core member, said handwheel being rotatable on the threads of said inner core member to move said outboard flange into a position abutting the outer ends of said core segments, further rotation of said handwheel thereupon moving said inner core member axially of said shaft to displace said core segments radially outwardly, thereby effecting an increase in the diameter of the cylindrical core of said spool.

14. An expansible and collapsible-core take-up spool for coiling wire and the like, comprising, a rotatable shaft, an inner core member axially slidable on said shaft, said inner core member having a conical portion thereon and a threaded end, a plurality of longitudinally extending radially movable spool core segments disposed about said conical portion of said inner core member, said core segments having arcuate outer surfaces collectively providing a substantially cylindrical core for said spool and having inner surfaces riding upon said conical portion of said inner core member, segment guide means permitting only radial movement of said core segments with respect to said shaft, and a radially extending .flange assembly threaded upon said threaded end of said inner core member in position abutting the adjacent ends of said spool core segments, said flange assembly being independent of said shaft and movable axially with respect thereto so that inward threaded movement of said flange assembly on said threaded end of said inner core member will cause said flange assembly to bear forcefully upon said ends of said spool core segments and cause said inner core member and said conical portion thereof to be moved axially on said shaft to displace said core segments radially outwardly, thereby effecting an increase in the diameter of the cylindrical core of said spool.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

